Frontline Chaos - August 2016 Update news

As half hinted on in previous update, I've been working on some additional infantry units and vehicles before / while I was doing the Litenium / Litensplant revision. As I've never shown detailed (if that can be said of Generals) infantry renders before, I decided to dedicate this update to some of the Revenant infantry. For variety I've also thrown in a vehicle, partially because it is related to one of the infantry, and also because I don't want to spoil the entire Revenant infantry roster in one update.

Warriors are the basic troops of the Revenant army. Cheap to train and quick on their feet, they can outpace most infantry on the battlefield. While not effective on their own, in groups they can take on enemy infantry with their Manchow assault rifles. When properly upgraded, they can also capture neutral and enemy structures.

While fast and a threat to enemy infantry that lack dedicated anti-personnel weaponry, their armour is only meant to provide basic resistance against small projectiles and shrapnel. When forced to take on Enforcers in equal numbers, often they lose the battle. The odds are stacked even more against them when facing advanced infantry like Dark Raiders, and are next to nothing against most vehicles unless in large hordes.

Vanguards are a common sight in larger Revenant infantry platoons and Revenant compounds. Clad in a bulky exoskeleton, these men and women can use their tri-barreled gattling guns to lay down an impressive storm of bullets against any target that presents itself. Besides providing strength beyond normal human capabilities, the exoskeleton also provides targeting assistance to track faster targets. This enables Vanguards to use their weapon against aerial targets. Especially slower units like helicopters are a favoured target among Vanguards. The last advantage of the exoskeleton is that it makes Vanguards virtually uncrushable by vehicles.

This all comes at a cost. While deadly against personnel and aircraft, the gattling gun can't do much against heavy armoured targets like tanks or structures. The exoskeleton also slows the Vanguard down compared to most infantry, making it easier to pick them off. Lastly, a Vanguard is vulnerable to ambushes as the gattling gun takes some time to spin up to maximum firing speed.

The remaining part of the update comes with a small story. One of the things I liked about Generals was the GLA salvaging system. For those not familiar with it: when GLA units killed enemy vehicles, there was a chance for the vehicle to leave a crate upon destruction. This crate could be collected by any GLA unit (friend or foe), and would provide money or free rank for infantry, and weapon upgrades for most vehicles.

For Frontline Chaos I've redesigned this system. Every vehicle kill can leave a crate upon destruction. The difference here is that only infantry can gather these crates. The boons they can get from these crates are similar to those the GLA infantry had, namely money or free rank. Depending on the original rank of the killed vehicle, the amount of cash gained increases, and the chance it's a free rank also increases.

Toying with this idea, I wondered if I could get the whole weapon upgrade logic work for infantry, as in Generals it was only used on vehicles. One experiment later I concluded that it could work. Then I went to the drawing board for a weapon that could be carried by infantry, could be upgraded with salvage, and was not overly hilarious or unrealistic. The weapons I ended up with where either a kind of shotgun or a rocket launcher. A shotgun could get heavier ammunition scavenged from vehicle wrecks, while a rocket launcher could get better guidance salvaged from vehicles. Initially I decided to go with the rocket launcer idea, and merged the weapon salvage with an existing infantry idea, namely a soldier with a large deployable missile launcher.

After several attempts it proved that the unit would be hard to balance, and it looked odd from a lore point of view for a dude carrying a unwieldy rocket launcher to double as a sneaky scavenger that sniffs through vehicle wrecks. The units were split up again, with the missile launcher infantry kept as a trainable unit from the Barracks, and the newly christened Scavenger (with the shotgun idea) relegated to support power call-in.

On the battlefield there are few soldiers more resourceful then Scavengers. Carrying multiple pouches with various tools, Scavengers are specialized in sabotage and actions behind enemy lines. With their trusty tools they can repair vehicles, and if needed capture structures for their own (or Commander's) use. For self-defence, most Scavengers prefer to use a highly modular shotgun provided to them by Revenant forces. Combined with a generous supply of both buckshot and miniature explosive rounds, Scavengers can rapidly take down infantry and even hold their ground against light vehicles.

They are not named Scavengers without good reason. Used to live a life on the roads, they quickly learn that everything has a value, no matter how bad the looks are. On the battlefield they have the reputation of checking vehicle wrecks after (most of) the shooting has stopped, looking for loot they can use. It must be really bad for a Scavenger not to find something useful in a wreck. Especially ammunition and still functional weapons are a prized find. Whatever is found is quickly recycled to its bare components, and reused when necessary. Scavengers are fond of upgrading their shotgun with extra parts, for that extra punch when pulling the trigger, or those extra few shots they can fire in a moment's notice.

Scavengers are available through the Scavenger Drop Support Power.

A Scavenger is rarely seen without his heavy personalized Mongoose truck. Designed for off-road usage, it's durable 6x6 chassis is utilized to carry the Scavenger and his crew around. Trading protection for manoeuvrability, a Mongoose is light enough to be dropped out of an air plane by parachute and land with no problem. This is the preferred way for most Scavengers to appear on the battlefield. A turret on the back is armed with twin machineguns, and a single missile launcher to tackle armoured targets. To save weight and costs, the turret is controlled by the passenger, and will not function when the Mongoose has no passenger. Finally, the Mongoose has one more trick up it's sleeves. Mounted on the back of the truck are several mine dispensers. With the push of a button a small minefield can be laid behind the vehicle. These mines are a combination of fragmentation and high explosive mines, designed to hinder and incapacitate all kind of pursuers.

In all, a Mongoose is not meant for direct combat. While enough to protect its cargo against small-arms fire, the armour is not meant to protect against tank shells or missiles. The Mongoose is a hit-and-run vehicle used to provide fire support for when a Scavenger's shotgun isn't enough, or when an additional distraction is required.

Mongooses are available through the Scavenger Drop Support Power.